Advantages and disadvantages of oral administration
Advantageous: easy and less costly
Disadvantageous: Drug has to undergo a circuitous route to reach the site of infections, Some Abs passes to the lower bowel where some of the highest concentration of bacteria are to be found destruction of the commensal faecal flora lead to side effects (diarrhoea)
Advantages and disadvantages of intravenous administration
Advantageous: Dependable and reproducible effects, Entire administered dose reaches the systemic circulation immediately, the dose can be accurately titrated against response
Disadvantageous: Requires a functioning cannula, More expensive and labour intensive than other routes, Cannulation is distressing to some patients, especially children, Cannulae are prone to infection, IV injection of drugs may cause local reactions
Combinations of antibiotics are used to overcome the presence or prevent the emergence of drug-resistant strains, and to broaden the spectrum, especially for empiric therapy
Empiric antibiotic therapy should use broad spectrum therapy if the patient is very ill, then modify based on culture results to use narrow spectrum, long-half life, low toxicity, inexpensive antibiotics
The right antibiotic should be prescribed for the right patient at the right time with the right dose and the right route, causing the least harm to the patient and future patients